Your Pregnancy Week 9

You

You may find yourself riding pregnancy's emotional roller coaster, feeling moody one day and joyful the next. Disturbing as this is to some women who pride themselves on being in control, what you're going through is normal and will probably continue throughout your pregnancy. Up-and-down emotions are partly caused by raging hormones.

Your skin needs a helping hand to survive pregnancy, too. It will become drier, and perhaps itchier, as your body loses much of its natural oils. It may be worth switching to a moisturising bodywash and a gentle body moisturiser. Some women find that acne becomes a
problem for them during pregnancy, even if they haven't been bothered
by it in the past, while some women notice an improvement in their acne during pregnancy. but
this doesn't happen for everyone.

Weight gain during pregnancy

Your weight gain during pregnancy is an important way to monitor the well being of your developing baby. Even though your weight gain may be small, your body is growing. Keep track of your weight gain with our weight gain calculator.

Many information sources and pregnancy books will try to provide guides
about the 'recommended weight gain' during pregnancy. These are usually
along the lines of 'putting on 2- 3 kg in the first 20 weeks, then ½ a
kilo per week until the baby is due, averaging 12-14 kg in total. While
this may be true for some in women, in practice this is rarely the
case.

Many women will put on most of their pregnancy weight gain
during the first 20 weeks, or only gain a few kilograms up until 12 to
16 weeks of the pregnancy, then experience a large 'growth spurt'
during the middle of their pregnancy up until about 32 weeks, slowing
down their weight gain over the next 4 to 6 weeks and then losing 1 to
2 kg just prior to going into labour. A woman's overall weight gain
when carrying a single baby may be as little as 8 kg, or as much as 20
kg.

If you are excessively sick during the earlier months of pregnancy, you
may find you do not put on any weight for a while (or possibly even
lose weight). Usually when the nausea and/or vomiting settles, your
appetite returns and you have a 'growth spurt' for a few weeks, as your
body 'catches up'. Of course if your vomiting gets to the point where
you are becoming dehydrated, it may be necessary to see your caregiver
and be admitted to the hospital for a drip in the vein, and/or
medications to help stop the vomiting.

Most women carrying twins, triplets or more will put on more weight,
however it is not 'double' or 'triple' the expected amount. Many women
carrying multiples find that their weight gain is not that much
different from women having a single baby. As a guide for twins you may
put on up to 15 to 20 kgs (or more) and for triplets it may be up to 20
to 25 kgs (or more). Be aware that with triplets or quads, your babies
will probably be born premature (less than 37 weeks) and therefore your
weight gain will generally be put on early and more quickly.

Find more

Your baby

She is almost fully developed and measures approximately 2.2 - 3cm cm long and weighs 2 grams. Her tiny body is starting to make its first movements, although it is unlikely you will feel these yet. Her eyelids are fused and won't open until week 27. Her wrists are more developed, ankles have formed, and her fingers and toes are clearly visible. Her arms are growing longer and bend at the elbows. By week's end, the inner workings of her ears are complete.

Your baby looks more recognisable as a human being, although she is extremely small. It is probably impossible to distinguish a male from a female by ultrasound, genitals have begun to form.